Every Girl for Herself
by fl4sh
Summary: Jade was always the protective type, so when she found out that her sister was dating the red-headed speedster on the team she decided to take action. CheshRoy and smidge of Spitfire later on.
1. Chapter 1

**Every girl for herself**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice**

Jade was always the protective type, especially when it came to her sister. Even though she doesn't seem like it nor does Artemis ever seem to need protection, Jade was always there for Artemis. Ever since they were kids, Jade protected her.

When Artemis would have a nightmare or when she did something she wasn't supposed to.

When their mother got arrested, leaving them only with their dad.

When their dad would try to force them to keep training after one of those long and brutal sessions where Artemis would be covered in bruises and her clothes stained with sweat and blood.

When the small avalanche almost killed Artemis.

Whatever the situation, Jade was always there making sure that Artemis was safe.

But, when Jade left, she left Artemis alone and unprotected. However, Artemis was always grateful for that because it forced her to have to protect herself and to not always rely on her older sister.

Artemis still and always will remember her sister's last words to her before she left. _Haven't you learned already? In this family, it's every girl for herself_.

Artemis took those words to heart where ever she went and followed them religiously no matter what path she chose to venture on. But when she began to date the red headed speedster on the Team, she put those words with the rest of her past; the back of her head.

Although Artemis may have suppressed her sister's words in the furthest part of her brain, Cheshire still lives by her code. So when Jade found out about this 'relationship' her baby sister was having with another member of her pitiful team of good do-ers, she was less than ecstatic. Of course, Jade was going to let them know, so she decided that she should pay the goofy, freckled faced sidekick a visit because, you know, she has manners, which means that she must properly introduce herself to the lucky guy that gets the pleasure, no honor of dating her beautiful sister. But she was going to need some help from one of _her_ love interests.

Red Arrow had just finished his nightly 'patrol' of the streets and entered his apartment through a window. He pulled off his domino mask and dropped heavily onto his couch in exhaustion, pinching the bridge of his nose while his head sunk into the cushion.

"Hello Red, it's been a while." Cheshire stepped out of the shadows of the apartment to reveal herself.

Red Arrow tumbled onto the floor and aimed an arrow at Cheshire.

"What are you doi- how'd you even get in?!"

"I've broken into the Pentagon before, I'm pretty sure I can break into an apartment Roy." Cheshire stated as she approached Roy, pulling off her mask.

"What do you want?" Roy asked aggressively, still aiming the arrow at Cheshire.

"Chill Red, always so hostile." Cheshire said calmly, using her index finger to lower the arrow. "Why can't I just visit an old friend?"

"I don't know, maybe because you're a world class assassin and never do anything without having a motive." Roy said matter-of-factly setting his bow and arrow back down.

"True."

"So what do you really want?" Roy asked as he wearily sat back down on the couch with his eyes glued to the floor.

"I need your help with something." Cheshire said very directly.

"And why would I help you? Because if I recall correctly, the last time I complied with you asking for my help, you left me to die." Roy's voice started to become aggressive again.

"You can't put that on me. You knew the risks going in, plus you're alive aren't you?" Cheshire said putting her hands on her hips.

Roy scoffed and said, "Barely and I only took those risks because-" Roy stopped, knowing he already said too much.

"Because of what? Because you thought we had something?" Cheshire laughed at the idea. "Roy, I'm just not that type of girl. I try not to get tied down by pointless things like that."

Roy scoffed again, "You don't need to tell me, I already know."

"Whatever." Cheshire said, trying to sound apathetic. "So are you going to help me or not?"

"Depends. What do you need my help with?"

"I need to know where that kid in the yellow Flash costume lives."

Roy's head shot up and his eyes glared at Cheshire.

"What do you want with him?" Roy asked in an alarmed tone.

"Calm down Roy, I'm not going to kill him." Cheshire reassured.

"Then what are you going to do then?" Roy asked, still suspicious of Cheshire's plan.

"I just want to introduce myself, that's all. I mean he is dating my sister." Cheshire confessed.

"I don't buy it."

"C'mon Roy, does it look or sound like I'm lying."

"You're an assassin; you're trained to control your body's reactions when you lie."

"Yea, but you told me that you could always tell if I was lying." Cheshire went and knelt down in front of Roy so that they were eye to eye. "So prove it."

Roy stared intently into Cheshire's eyes, looking for her tells that he knew so well.

"Okay, so you aren't going to kill him, but you're still lying about just 'introducing' yourself." Roy said putting air quotes around 'introducing'. "So again, what are you going to do to him?"

Cheshire didn't answer, but just looked away.

"Jade." Roy said violently.

Cheshire let out a sigh. "Okay, truth is, I'm making sure this kid doesn't hurt my sister."

Roy stared into Cheshire's eyes again and when he realized she wasn't lying his eyes widened and he started to laugh.

"You're serious!" he said between laughs. "I always knew you loved your sister Jade, but I never took you for the over-protective type."

"Shut up! I'm not; I'm just making sure this guy doesn't treat her like my dad did!"

Roy started laughing hysterically when he heard Cheshire say that.

"Are you kidding me? Wally couldn't hurt Artemis even if both her arms were tied behind her back." Roy continued to laugh hysterically.

"Well I'm just making sure okay!"

"I'm telling you now Jade, Wally wouldn't hurt Artemis, trust me. I've known the guy for years and he's not that type of guy." Roy now starting to calm down.

"I don't care; I want to make sure of it. Now just tell me where the kid lives so I can get it over with." Cheshire demanded, obviously embarrassed.

"Alright, but first, you have to tell me what you're going to do."

Cheshire sighed again. "I'm just going to give him the normal, I'm-an-assassin-so-if-you-break-my-sister's-heart-I'll-kill-you-speech, okay."

Roy gave Cheshire a look. "That's normal?"

"It is in my family." Cheshire said remembering all the times her mom would scare off her boyfriends with the same speech, except daughter version.

"Well that better be all that you say or do." Roy said, trying to make it sound like a threat.

Cheshire gave a nod of assurance.

Roy then told Cheshire where Wally lived.

"Thanks Roy, I owe you one."

Roy just scoffed, but Cheshire could tell that he knew she was being sincere. Cheshire then leaned in and kissed Roy wistfully. Although it was a short one, it was still full of passion and it was something both of them longed since they last saw each other.

When Cheshire broke the kiss she looked at Roy with a devious grin and said.

"See you next time Red."

She then darted out the same window Roy had come in leaving Roy's body completely numb from all feeling except for the sweet touch of Jade's lips that lingered on his.

**And I'll leave you guys with that. I was going to write the whole story but I want to test the waters first. So R&R all tips and suggestions are welcomed!**


	2. Chapter 2

Jade had reached Wally's house in Central City and was awaiting his arrival inside of his room. While waiting though, she decided to survey his room. It was the usual, stereotypical male teenager room. Clothes were strewn all over the room, bed covers tangled in a way that made absolutely no sense, numerous posters of the Flash pinned to the walls, and an almost unbearable smell hung in the air. Jade couldn't say she was surprised, but one thing did catch her eye. Under a pile of old homework assignments and notes was the tip of an arrow. When she managed to pull it out of the mass of papers she recognized it as one of Artemis'. Jade, wondering why this kid had one of her sister's arrows in his room began to make assumptions.

"If Artemis' arrow is in here, then that means she's been in here." Jade thought to herself.

"And if she's been in here, then that means…" Jade looked over at the bed covers that were strangling each other.

Jade's eyes widened under her mask as she let out an airy gasp, she was frozen, vivid mental pictures of her sister and Kid Flash entangled in the bed covers intruded her mind. Her mind was being polluted by these erotic scenes of her sister and Kid Flash. However, she was quickly broken out of this trance when she heard a knob wiggle.

Wally opened the door to his room and let out an overdrawn yawn after having a hards-day of work. He had three tests today that he couldn't study for because of last night's mission. He had to run two miles in P.E without using his powers which is excruciatingly boring for a speedster. After school he had to attend combat training with Black Canary that didn't go too well because Black Canary and GA got into an argument that morning so it just ended up in Black Canary taking out her anger on Wally. Then after that, when every single part of Wally's body was aching and his mind was utterly fried and all he wanted to do was collapse onto his bed, Artemis wanted to talk to him about an argument she had with her mom which took over an hour. But finally, after tending to all of his responsibilities he was able to come home and relax on his soft, comfortable bed.

Wally dove onto his bed and exhaled, relieved to have gotten through the day and to finally be where he'd been longing to be since the day started. As Wally shut his eyes and had gotten situated he heard a familiar voice.

"So you're the new boy toy my sister's been playing around with."

Wally's body shot up and when his eyes had finally processed who the intruder was he quickly moved into a battle stance.

"How'd you find me here?!" demanded the alarmed speedster, although it didn't come off as threatening as he wanted it since everything about him screamed fatigue. Shoulders slumped, posture too relaxed, eyelids drooping and his voice hoarse were the immediate tell signs, which Cheshire easily noticed.

"Cool it sidekick, you're obviously not in any shape to fight, plus that's not why I'm here."

Every part of his body wanted to believe Cheshire's words, but his stubborn head told him otherwise.

"Don't call me a sidekick! And I don't care how bad of shape I'm in I can still kick your butt."

Cheshire almost cackled at his threats knowing damn well that they weren't true, not even in the slightest; even Wally knew that he had spoken empty threats which showed when his eyes turned to the side and he bit his bottom lip.

"Alright, let's not get too ahead of ourselves speedster; too prove that I'm not lying, here." Cheshire stripped herself of all dangerous objects that could be considered as a weapon and threw them in front of Wally.

Wally's body immediately went limp, relieved to know that Cheshire was in fact not there to pick a fight. Even though Wally had a thick skull, he was still smart enough to know when he was outmatched and in this case it was by a large amount.

Wally sat back on his bed, dropping his head while shutting his eyes and running his hand through his hair, letting out a long sigh.

When he lifted up his face and his gaze met that of Cheshire's who had now removed her mask, he asked her, "Alright, so if you're not here to fight, then what are you doing here and how'd you even find me?"

"I'm here to talk about my sister and I have my ways." Jade's voice was direct and authoritative, but Wally didn't seem to notice, his mind had started to become clouded with rage, 'how could Jade even mention her sister after all she had put her through'_,_ was the only concern Wally had on his mind and he would be sure to inform Jade of it.

"Why? It's not like you care about her, you left her with your dad, the infamous and brutal Sportsmaster, _remember_." Wally knew that he hit a nerve, seeing Jade's face twitch a little, but his anger had gotten the best of him.

"You don't know anything about our family or what we had to go through, so don't act like you do." Jade's voice was quiet, but it still held its intimidating qualities, although it took everything in her body to not snap his neck.

Wally could see the regret and pain in Jade's eyes, but he still couldn't forgive her for ditching her younger sister behind to be at the will of their evil father and retorted, "You didn't have to live with your psychotic father by yourself or have to tend to your handicapped mother, so don't act like you did."

Wally was seething with anger and hostility now; it took every ounce of will in him to not go berserk and he could tell Jade was having trouble doing the same as he saw her fist clench tightly around something within her sleeve.

However, it seemed that Jade's fuse was shorter than Wally's as she lunged toward him with enough force to push him on his back with the arrow that she concealed inside her sleeve only inches away from puncturing Wally's throat and forced back his head with a strong grip below his chin with her other hand.

"Listen to me and listen close. I don't care how much you think you know about my past or how much you think I don't care about Artemis. I've protected her and I will always protect her, and I will slit your throat if I feel even in the slightest that you've caused her pain. Got it?"

Jade's voice was full of hostility as she tried to keep her voice at a whisper, but it was on the verge of being a shrill.

Wally's face was scrunched up in vexation as his eyes focused themselves on Jade who was violently breathing through her flared nostrils and glaring with wide, deadly eyes, but he managed to choke out, "Artemis doesn't need your protection anymore, she's got me now and I won't ever cause her as much pain as you have."

Wally's words shot through Jade with excruciating pain causing her to become enraged as she tightened her death grip around his neck. Jade cocked the arrow back so she could hammer it into him with more power, but with only moments away from Jade lodging the arrow into Wally's chest, an ear-piercing shatter was heard and Jade was flung into the wall behind her and enveloped inside of a net. Wally turned his head toward the broken window to see who his timely savior was and not to his surprise did he see none other than Red Arrow standing atop of the opposite house, bow in one arm with the other angled perfectly for the perfect shot.


	3. Chapter 3

Roy shot an arrow aimed above the window with a line of rope connected to it so he could zip line into Wally's room. Once this task, which was basically second nature to him, was done Roy made it top priority to check the status of Wally.

"You alright Kid?"

Wally, whose face was as red as his hair from being strangled by Jade had his hand on his neck trying to soothe it, was able to reply, although voice hoarse, "Yea, I'm fine. I'm more worried about what my parents are going to think when they see this though."

The door to his room flung open with an unnecessary force revealing a pair of frantic parents.

"Wally! What happened?" His dad asked urgently, his mom already at his side to inspect him for any wounds.

Wally grabbed hold of his mother's wrists to pull her examining hands off of his face, looking straight into her worrying eyes with a reassuring smile that he'd given her so many times after coming home from missions with bruises or bandages on him.

"I'm fine mom, really. Red Arrow saved me." Wally turned his head to Roy as he said this, giving him a nod to thank him which Roy returned.

Wally's mom upon hearing that immediately turned to Roy to embrace him in a hug, catching him off guard, not used to receiving such warm affection.

"Thank you so much, I don't know how we can ever repay you for saving our Wally." Wally's mom had her hands clasped together, staring at Roy with grateful and sincere eyes that were flooded with tears.

"It's fine, I'm just glad Wally's okay too." Roy then shifted his eyes to Jade, who was still pinned against the wall. "But I do need to get back to work."

Both of his parents turned their attention to their son's intruder who they hadn't notice, but when Wally's mom saw that Jade was detained and unable to fight back she violently charged her, letting out an ear-wrenching shriek and raising her fist to smash it into Jade's face. However, Wally was quick to hold her back, his dad assisting him when realizing Wally wasn't enough to restrain the vengeful mother.

"Mom, calm down, Red Arrow and I can handle this, just give us a moment." Wally said while struggling to hold his mother back, who was still screaming in rage and wildly swinging her arms around, landing a few punches on her husband and son.

Once settled down, Wally's mom complied with Wally's request and reluctantly left the room with Wally's dad, but not without giving Jade a spiteful glare.

"Lovely parents you've got there kid; I can see where you get your feistiness from." Jade was completely calm, totally disregarding the fact that she was trapped.

"I don't think you're in any position to be joking around." Roy said extremely serious, stepping up to stand face to face to Jade.

"I see my kiss didn't have the long-term affect I thought it would on you." Jade said in a fake disappointed tone, but then, leaning her face toward Roy's through the net and shifting her tone to a more sensual one said, "Maybe I should try again."

Wally's face became distorted in incredulity, "You guys kissed?"

Roy's face scrunched up in chagrin, but quickly regained its serious and brooding look.

"Yes, but it won't happen again."

"Oh, I wouldn't be too sure about that Red, I don't know how long I'll be able to resist my attraction to you this time." Jade's tone still sensual, trying to break the obvious tension within the room emitted mostly by Roy.

Roy ignored her words and just went on to the topic that he wanted to discuss. "Cute trick, using a paralytic toxin to make sure I didn't follow you. The ironic thing is I wasn't planning on following you in the first place."

"Eh, I didn't want to take any chances and thanks, it's come in handy on many occasions." Jade licked her lips sensually, getting Roy to scoff, trying to hide his jealousy and retorted, "I'm not surprised, manipulating people is your job."

"It's more of a hobby, job means it's not fun and believe me, it is very fun, especially when it's you." Jade's sensual tone and body language still hadn't changed making it almost impossible for Roy to maintain his authoritative composure.

Meanwhile, Wally had just processed the conversation and realized something didn't add up.

"Wait a minute. You knew she was coming here Roy and you weren't going to follow her?" The tone in Wally's voice made his question seem more like a demand for an answer.

"Uh oh, looks like someone's in trouble." Jade commentated playfully, earning two redheads shooting her a violent look.

Roy turned his attention back to Wally who was clearly fuming at that point and let out a sigh before answering.

"No, I wasn't going to follow her, but that's because-"

"Because you were too busy locking lips with her!" Wally interrupted, and then putting two and two together, "and you probably told her where I was too, didn't you?"

"No, that's not at all true!" Roy shouted, trying to defend himself.

"Oh really? So you didn't tell her where to find me and put both me and my parents at risk?!" Wally was on the verge of going ballistic, adrenaline the only thing keeping him awake.

"No, I mean yes, but it's not like that! She wasn't supposed to try to hurt you!"

"Oh, she wasn't supposed to try to hurt me," Wally snapped sardonically, then raised his voice to a shout again, "She's a freaking assassin; of course she was trying to hurt me, hell she almost killed me! How could you be so ignorant and blind to that fact! But then again, you probably didn't have a lot of blood going to your brain at the time."

Roy opened his mouth to retaliate to the last statement, but decided against it.

Wally gripped his hands to his hair, scrunching them tightly and shut his eyes in aggravation before continuing in a softer tone.

"God Roy, I thought I could trust you, you were the last person I'd expect to betray me like this." Wally dropped his head, the rage within him starting to dissipate while exhaustion took its place, but he kept going in an almost inaudible speech.

"I trusted you Roy, I looked up to you. You were the older brother I never had, someone I could always go to for help, for comfort, for protection. But obviously, I was wrong." Wally was going to say more, but his body and mind had had enough for the day and he slipped into unconsciousness, collapsing with Roy catching him before he collided with the floor.

Roy held Wally's inert body in his arms as he observed him with ashamed and apologetic eyes. Wally's chest rose and fell in rhythm with his slow and steady breathing, his eyes were barely holding onto few drops of tears, and his face expressed all kinds of hurt and weariness. Roy sagged his head and shut his eyes, and whispered, "I'm sorry little brother, I'm sorry." However he quickly raised his head to turn his attention to Jade, realizing he hadn't heard much from her which was uncharacteristic, but was disappointed when he saw an empty and ripped net and decided that she'd already gotten too far to pursue.

Roy laid Wally into his bed and tucked him in. He then walked out of the bedroom to apologize to Wally's parents, thinking it was the least he could do for all the trouble he had just caused them, although he knew it wasn't enough. However Wally's parents were fast asleep outside of the bedroom, both resting with their backs against the wall, hands intertwined with his mom's head sitting comfortably in the crook of her husband's neck. The image was almost unbearable for Roy, such a beautiful and loving family, worried sick for their son, not even aware of the danger they were in, and it was all because him. Roy turned from the sight and started walking toward the front door, swearing to himself that he'd take better care of the people he loved, but was stopped halfway when he heard a tired, high-pitch voice whisper, "Thank you."

Roy slightly turned his head, enough for his peripheral vision to see the speaker, and replied, "No. Thank you.", then proceeded toward the exit.

**Don't worry, there'll be more. And thank you to guest reviewer White Bishop for the idea of the paralytic toxin, it gave me a lot of inspiration to continue to write this. Anyway hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. **


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning Wally woke up to the sound of his mother's voice, her hand stroking his hair back and an affectionate smile plastered on her face, "How are you feeling honey?"

Wally groggily lifted himself up with his elbow, rubbing one of his eyes with his other hand, still a little dazed, "I'm fine Mom."

When Wally saw that his mother wasn't totally convinced, he tried to give his mom another one of his reassuring smiles, but his mother wasn't so easily fooled, running her hand down Wally's face until it settled under his chin.

"Wally, what happened?" Wally's mother's face was begging for an answer, it had a look of pure agony knowing that her son was in pain, and wouldn't tell her why.

As much as Wally wanted to tell his mom about his pain, about last night, about _Roy_ to ease her worrying, he knew it would only unsettle her even more, and he couldn't bring himself to do that, even if she was desperate to know.

"Mom, I promise I'm fine. I'm just a little tired that's all." Wally tried to sound as sincere as he could, but his face betrayed his tone.

However his mom knew when she wasn't going to get anything out of her son, having to have to accept that fact many times before, and let out a sigh.

"Alright, well then come down and eat some breakfast. I made your favorites."

Despite being extremely hungry, and craving his mother's breakfast, there was something, _someone_ more important to him at that moment, and he wasn't going let his hunger impede him from seeing her.

"Sorry mom, but there's someone I need to see first." And with that, Wally kissed his mother on the cheek and sped out of the house, grabbing a piece of bacon on his way out, and making his way to Gotham City.

When Wally reached Artemis' house, he rapidly started knocking on the front door, and was greeted by Paula. Before Artemis' mother could ask Wally's purpose of being at her abode, Wally answered it for her.

"Is Artemis here?" Wally was out breath and hunched over, barely able to speak those three words and his eyes had a dull hue to them instead of their usual vibrant green tinge.

"Yea, she's in her room. Why, what's wrong Wally? Are you okay? Is Artemis in trouble?" Paula barraged him with questions while she gestured him to come inside and yelled for Artemis to come down.

After a couple of seconds of dry heaving, Wally was able to catch his breath and reply to the sequence of questions.

"I'm fine, just out of juice and no, Artemis isn't in trouble. I just need to talk to her."

But before Paula could ask another onslaught of questions, Artemis' voice was heard as she walked down the stairs, "What mom?"

She was pleasantly surprised though, when she saw her boyfriend in her living room and was haste in showing it when she immediately embraced him in a hug. It wasn't until she looked into his eyes did she realize that he was hurt, _bad_.

"Wally, what's wrong?" Artemis' expression immediately shifted to one of complete concern, her eyes conveying the same emotions as his mother's had.

"Can we talk?" Wally's voice was weary, and it was obvious that he was holding back tears.

"Yea, of course." Artemis took his hand and let him up to her room. "We'll just be a minute mom."

Paula, understanding the situation didn't protest, only giving a nod of acceptance.

Once in the room and Artemis shut her door, Wally broke down into Artemis' shoulder, squeezing her tightly to him. Artemis was completely nonplussed; her only reaction was to wrap her arms around him, putting one hand on his neck and the other on his back. Artemis had never seen Wally so vulnerable before, so damaged, it pained her to witness it. She could feel his body shaking, his heart pounding against hers, his hands firmly clutching her waist, and his eyes sobbing with no sign of diminishing.

They stayed like that for a couple of minutes, no words spoken, and that was perfectly fine with Wally. He didn't need Artemis' words of comfort, he only needed her gentle touch, her comforting warmth, her indefinite love, and Artemis was more than willing to provide them.

Finally, after emptying the dam that held back a multitude restrained tears and emotions, Wally was ready to talk: about Jade, about Roy, about everything.

The pair sat on the bed to have their deliberation, hands intertwined perfectly as if they were molded for each other.

Artemis searched Wally's somber eyes for answers, but all she could see was pain, pain that she once saw in her own eyes when Jade left her.

"Wally, what happened?" Artemis was still locked into Wally's dead eyes, her voice barely louder than a whisper, but filled with fear, fear of what Wally had to have gone through, to have had experienced by himself to have this intense torment trapped inside him.

"Your sister found me last night; she knows where I live." Wally was on the verge of breaking down again, but he held it back like he's done so many times before.

Artemis' eyes widened in rage. 'Of course her sister was behind this, who else could cause so much pain to someone' she mused, tightening her grip on Wally's hands.

Letting out a growl, Artemis spoke, "What did she do to you?! Did she hurt you, because if she did, I swear I'll hunt her down, I'll-"

Wally let go of her hands and grabbed the side of her arms, "Artemis, she didn't hurt me – that much, but that's not what I wanted to talk to you about."

Artemis' face had a look of bewilderment. 'What could Wally want to talk about that's worse than her assassin sister attacking him.' She thought.

"Roy came; he stopped her from hurting me." Roy's name tasted like copper coming off of his tongue as if the name had blood on it, and it might as well had since Wally believed Roy's hands were covered in his from stabbing him in the back.

Artemis was about to express her gratitude for Roy, but Wally continued, even though it hurt to recount the previous night's events.

"He told her where to find me." Wally's voice was deadpanned.

Artemis was taken back, she couldn't believe that Roy would do something like that, especially since it was Wally that Jade was after.

"W-what, th-that doesn't make any sense. Why would he do that? That doesn't sound like him at all?" Artemis fumbled through her brain trying to make sense of the new information she had just been given.

Wally clamped his eyes shut and clenched his fists in vexation. Artemis had asked the same questions Wally had asked himself the night before, and like last night, he only had one answer.

"Because he cares about your sister more than he cares about me!" Wally growled this more than he yelled it, putting more emphasis on the aggression in his tone.

Artemis' confused expression forced Wally to reluctantly explain.

"Your sister and Roy have been sleeping with each other!"

Artemis' confused expression instantly turned to one of horror and disgust. Artemis opened her mouth, but words wouldn't allow themselves to crawl out of the gaping abyss. Wally took this as his cue to continue his violent rant.

"He betrayed me. He endangered my family. He destroyed everything we had. And for what? Some girl? I thought we were brothers, but apparently not." Wally hung his head, the aching in his heart forcing him to stop.

Although Artemis felt slightly defensive toward the 'some girl' remark directed toward her sister, she couldn't help but relate with Wally.

When Jade left, she felt betrayed, she felt like Jade had endangered the family by splitting it up, she felt like Jade destroyed everything they had, and although it wasn't for some boy, it was still for a selfish reason.

Emotions that Artemis had tried so hard to keep from resurfacing started to rush through her. After years of keeping them locked away, they all came roaring out overwhelming Artemis in a typhoon of mixed emotions.

However, one emotion seemed to trump the rest, her body settling on this feeling of pure anger, something she hadn't felt since she saw her dad hit Jade when she was a kid.

"It ends now." Artemis' voice was vituperative, ending each word as if they were their own separate statements to add emphasis. She wanted action; she was craving it like a man does a woman's body.

Wally raised his head to Artemis' words meeting her bitter gaze, her eyes were like stones: gray and cold.

He couldn't see past this brooding façade, but he knew that somewhere, deep down in Artemis, something had snapped, and whatever was going to happen next was going to involve pain, _much_ pain.

As Artemis sat there, blood pulsing through her veins like an electric current, she repeated the forbidden words that her sister had once told her in her head, 'In this family, it's every girl for herself.'. Never in Artemis' life had she ever believed that more. She was determined to make Jade a woman of her words, though failing to see the irony in her intentions.

Artemis stood from her bed and walked across her room, Wally's gaze intently following her. She stopped in front of her bow, picking it up, rubbing her fingers along the twine.

"W-what are you doing?" Wally asked hesitantly, knowing how hostile Artemis gets when in the wrong mood.

Artemis didn't answer him, not until she reached her window.

Facing the transparent screen, looking straight ahead, as if all the answers to the world were right in front of her eyes Artemis responded, "I'm going to teach Roy a lesson that Jade taught me."

Artemis then opened her window and stuck her leg out, taking the first step of her pursuit of Roy.

**Sorry this took so long, had to make this summer a little bit productive. Anyway R&R I always appreciate your guys' input. I'll take suggestions too, because frankly I'm starting to run out of ideas and inspiration. Thanks**


	5. Chapter 5

Just as Artemis was about to jump down into the alley below her, she felt a familiar hand grip her arm; however, she refused to let herself look back at the face that the hand belonged too.

"Artemis, you don't have to do this. You don't have to do this for me. As much as I want Roy to suffer, and trust me I do, I can't let you hurt him."

Wally's hand was still holding onto Artemis' arm, but when she heard Wally's disapproval of what she was about to do, she yanked her arm free and forcefully turned herself to him.

"How can you say that? He hurt you Wally, he put you and your family in danger, he betrayed you, he- he- he's sleeping with my sister!"

Wally scrunched his face up as if he'd just been punched in the stomach.

"I know, and I don't know if I'll ever be able to forgive him for what he's done, but-." Wally paused, fighting within himself wondering if he was making the right decision.

"But, I know that if I allow you to hurt him, I'll never be able to forgive myself, and I'll be just as bad as him."

Artemis could tell that Wally was having an internal war, but she was too high on rage to think clearly. All that was in her mind were images of her beating Roy into a pulp and she was going to try to sway Wally to see her point of view.

"Wally, you'll never be as bad as Roy. What he did to you is unforgivable and he needs to pay." Artemis held Wally's hands in hers, looking straight into his eyes as if trying to persuade him with her eyes as well as with her words. "He doesn't deserve your sympathy, he doesn't deserve your friendship, and he sure as hell doesn't deserve my sister."

Wally didn't know what to do. He wanted nothing more in that moment to let Artemis hunt down Roy, but he just knew that it was the wrong decision. He knew that somewhere deep down, he still cared for Roy and he hated himself for it. He hated that he had to be the better man, he hated that he caused Artemis to be in this situation, and he hated the fact that everything Artemis had said was true.

"Fine. Go, but just know that I don't support this."

Wally's eyes stayed directed to the floor, they didn't dare to meet the stones that were staring at him.

"I'm sorry Wally, but I have to do this." Artemis, let her hands slip from Wally's as she returned back to her previous position out the window.

She took one glance back at Wally, who looked as if he had just lost everything that he loved in his life, and whispered 'I love you' before leaping out the window.

Once he felt Artemis' presence gone, Wally raised his head to meet the heart-wrenching gaze of the open window. A gust of wind blowing by his face as if trying to slap him for what he had just done.

* * *

It was 12 pm and Roy had just woken up, his conscious didn't allow him to fall asleep until 4 am last night. His body was sore from the effects of the paralytic toxin that Jade had exposed him too, but he forced himself up, and sat at the edge of his bed, using the palms of his hands to rub his exhausted eyes then sliding them down to cover his face. Roy just sat there, reminding himself of the damaged he had caused, letting out muffled groans due to the soreness and regret behind the mask his hands had created. It wasn't until he heard a knock on his window did he stiffly get up from his position.

Usually Roy would've been more cautious when approaching his window after a knock and would've taken his bow and arrow, but he couldn't care less about his safety in his current mood. Much to his surprise, it was Artemis knocking on his window, and he made no hesitation in letting her in, but receiving a heavy punch to the face in return. Roy stumbled back, completely taken back by the unexpected ambush, his head throbbing with pain as his vision became blurred. He fell back, leaving him on the ground half-dazed until Artemis knocked him out with a brutal blow to the head with her bow.

* * *

When Roy awoke from his unconsciousness, he lifted his head up wearily and took note of a few things: his head was in immense pain, he was tied tightly to a chair, and Artemis was aiming an arrow at his face – the sharp kind. The latter was what Roy was most worried about – clearly.

"Aa-artemis, what's going on? Why are you doing this?" Roy asked softly.

Roy had his guesses as to what Artemis' motive was, but he felt he would soon have confirmation.

Artemis decided silence was the best answer, making the situation even more ominous. Meanwhile, Roy was trying to search for answers in Artemis' eyes, but all he could see was the hate that polluted them, and he knew it was for good reasons.

"Artemis, if this is about last night, I'm sorry. I know I can't ask you to forgive me, but just know that I'll never put Wally in danger like that ever again, I swear to it. I made a mistake by trusting Jade, I shouldn't-"

Roy was cut short when an arrow pierced the air beside his cheek, taking a small bite of flesh, attaching itself to the wall behind him, and a menacing voice filled his ears.

"Don't you ever mention my sister's name, ever!"

The savagery in Artemis' voice frightened Roy. It was as if Artemis was possessed by some demonic beast whose only purpose was to reap vengeance.

Artemis readied another arrow aimed at Roy.

"Now, I'm going to ask you some questions. Give me an answer I like and you might avoid having an arrow lodged in your eye. Give me an answer I don't like…"

Artemis smirked before continuing.

"Well, let's just say I really hope your answers are crap."

Roy didn't know what to do, he was completely at Artemis' mercy, and he didn't know if he'd be able to answer her questions correctly. Although Roy was quick with shooting arrows and his former name was 'Speedy'. He wasn't so quick when it came to talking under pressure, well, socializing at that.

Artemis took Roy's incredulous face as a sort of compliance and understanding, and tugged the arrow further back before asking her questions.

"Okay, first question: When?"

Roy was nonplussed. He had no idea what Artemis was trying to ask. 'What did she mean by when?'. 'Shouldn't she already know?'

"W-what, do you mean? Last night. I-it happened last night?"

Almost instantaneously an arrow zipped past Roy's ear, grazing it and drawing blood.

"That's not what I mean!" Artemis roared.

"I-I don't understand Artemis! W-what do you mean when?" Roy already had a hard enough time talking to other people, but now he was being fired at with arrows with a massive headache. He was way in over his head.

Artemis pulled another arrow back, aiming it directly at Roy's chest as if she was going to end his life, but decided against it and instead answered Roy's question, though clearly irritated.

"When did Jade and you start sleeping with each other?!"

Roy almost went into shock. He was definitely not prepared for a question like that, perplexed at how Artemis had even come up with that assumption. Roy opened his mouth to speak, but every answer he thought of he knew would likely get him killed. It wasn't until Artemis threatened to fire at him if he kept her waiting any longer did he answer her.

"Jade and I are not sleeping with each other. I don't know why you think we are, but I swear to you. We are not." Roy tried to say this as matter-as-fact as he could, but there were so many emotions going through him when he said it. He felt fear for his life. He felt anger toward Jade. He felt remorse for letting himself be enticed by her and ultimately leading to Wally's endangerment. He felt a fervent love and affection for Jade.

Artemis upon hearing this fired the arrow, slitting Roy's other cheek.

"Do not lie to me! I know you two are sleeping with each other!" Artemis was outraged, and on the verge of becoming ballistic, her voice basically a shrill.

Artemis aimed another arrow once more at Roy, desperation filling her eyes, desperate for confirmation. Roy saw this, and he knew that Artemis would go to any lengths to get it, but he didn't have the answer that she wanted. What Artemis wanted to hear wasn't the truth. She was so certain that Jade and Roy had been sleeping with each other that she wouldn't believe otherwise and she would destroy the world until she found evidence to prove it right, but most importantly, she'd destroy herself. She'd devote her entire life to finding this supposed truth, and shut everyone out in the process. Roy couldn't let that happen, but he couldn't lie to Artemis, even if it meant saving himself, but if he didn't Artemis would shoot an arrow through his chest. However, it wasn't until Roy remembered what he swore to himself did he find the answer to his dilemma. He swore he'd protect the ones he loved, and although he wouldn't consider Artemis a loved one, she was to Wally, and he was definitely one of Roy's. So he did what he had to, he protected the ones he loved.

"It started last month." Roy said bleakly, hanging his head, trying to hide the fact that he lied, trying to hide his fear for his life, and trying to convince himself he was doing the right thing.

Artemis, even though she received the answer and confirmation she expected, she was shocked. She didn't fully believe it until now. There was this small part in her that hoped and prayed that it wasn't true, but once that part in her diminished completely, there was nothing holding her back, and she unleashed all of her anger and hostility.

Artemis dropped her bow and arrow and charged Roy, hot tears streaming down her flushed face.

"You don't deserve my sister! You don't deserve Wally! You don't deserve to call yourself a hero!"

Each statement was followed by a powerful slap to the face, but they weren't what hurt the most. Each word Artemis spat felt like knives being jabbed into his flesh, yet Roy believed every single one.

Roy turned his bright red face toward Artemis' feet, not daring to meet her painful eyes.

"You're right. I don't deserve them, and I don't deserve to be called a hero."

"But you do deserve to suffer." Artemis growled.

Artemis reached into her pockets and pulled out sparring gloves that she had scavenged from Roy's apartment and slipped them on while glaring daggers into Roy, who had yet to reveal his face still.

Artemis assumed her place in front of Roy, cracking her knuckles with a sinister smirk on her face.

"I'm going to enjoy every second of this."

This got Roy to look up, but unfortunately made his face an easier target, and Artemis' fist connected with Roy's right cheek – hard.

Roy was surprised by Artemis' strength, but he didn't have time to think of anything else because he was struck with another heavy blow to the left cheek, causing him to spit out blood, much to Artemis' delight.

Artemis continued her onslaught of ferocious punches on Roy, grunting with each punch she launched, putting every bit of will, anger, and power she could into each of them.

After numerous long sequences of hits, Artemis stopped to catch her breath and recover her strength. She was fatigued to say the least; her arms felt as if they were going to fall out of their sockets, her hands felt as if they were smashed by hammers, her chest was heaving frantically just like her breathing and just like Roy's. There heavy and frantic breathing was the only sound in the room. However, she never failed to keep her intimidating façade from flustering.

Roy was still conscious, but barely. His blood soaked the floor beneath him and stained Artemis' hands. His nose was broken in more places than one, his left eye was swollen, his eyebrow was cut, his lip was split, and bruises had already begun to form on both sides of his face, but he endured. He endured because he knew it was what he deserved, what he needed. He needed to suffer, to be cleansed of all his wickedness. He needed to feel the pain that he had inflicted on Wally, on Artemis.

Once Artemis found her strength, she decided to make this next one count. She let images of Jade and Roy flood her mind, of Wally sobbing on her shoulder, of her Dad. Artemis clenched her fists tighter, if possible, flexed her muscles as hard as she could though they retaliated with pain, planted one foot ahead, let out a shriek full of rage and pain, and jolted her entire body forward as she guided her fist into the right side of Roy's face.

The momentum pulled Artemis to the left side of Roy; both of their heads dropping, but for different reasons. A dead silence filled the room, but was soon broken by the soft sobs of Artemis as she dropped to her knees dejectedly.

* * *

When Roy came through, the only thing to confirm his consciousness was the light that illuminated his room from the moon through an open window. A cool breeze blew through Roy's room, causing Roy to wince when it made contact with his bruised and delicate face.

Roy's memory was hazy, as though what had happened to him was a dream – or nightmare, but the excruciating pain that overwhelmed his face and the dried, indelible blood on his carpet told him otherwise.

Roy was exhausted, he was suffering, but he wasn't regretful. He knew he did the right thing, and although it wouldn't right the mistakes he had made, it was a start.

Roy looked toward his bed, bracing himself for the journey he was about to endeavor on.

He had barely made it to his bed before collapsing, all of the energy in him sapped, which makes it no surprise that he was in a deep slumber within seconds.

* * *

When Artemis swooped into her room, she hoped to see Wally, but he had already left, but that was mostly expected.

She propped her bow up against her closet and then went to her restroom, filling the tub with water and settling in it after stripping off her clothes, however, not taking off Roy's gloves until she was situated in the lukewarm water. Artemis let herself slip into the water, until it was right below her chin, her arms resting on the side of the tub, being cautious that her hands didn't make contact with the porcelain. She then raised her hands in front of her face for her eyes to view and study. They were still pulsing from all the blood that was rushed to them, and though it had been a while since she had attacked Roy, her hands were still clenched into fists, almost incapable of opening. Her knuckles had begun to bruise, and though she had developed callouses from years of hand-to-hand combat, the skin on her knuckles were peeled off.

Artemis stayed like this for a couple of minutes, unable to take her eyes off of her hands, but finally, Artemis couldn't take it anymore. She was too horrified, and violently plunged her hands under the water, scrubbing at her hands vigorously. Once she felt like she had cleansed her filthy hands, she resurfaced them, observing them with intent eyes. They were clean and clear of all blood, but the water had developed a red tinge to it. When Artemis noticed this, her breath was taken away from her as if a ghost had stolen it. Artemis quickly drained the water, her eyes wide with terror. It wasn't until all of the water was gone did Artemis finally allow herself to breathe again as she positioned herself into a fetal position, her head resting against the bottom of the tub. Artemis shut her eyes, her arms wrapped around her shins with tenacity, and she was shaking; from being cold and from being afraid.

Fatigue finally caught up with Artemis and was enough for her to ignore how uncomfortable she was considering she had drifted asleep.

However, the next morning she woke up in her bed, wrapped in a towel under her covers, only to find beside her bed on the floor a redheaded, freckled faced, green eyed speedster, peacefully sleeping, with a familiar ragged teddy bear muffled against him.

**Hope all of you sadistic readers enjoyed this. I've come to realize that a good portion of the people who read Fanfics are advocates of the brutal torturing and such haha, but anyway…**

**Thanks for all the suggestions and reviews guys, they mean a lot, so keep them coming. Also White Bishop no need to say sorry, your intentions were to help, not to blatantly bash so it's fine if your review was harsh. Plus like I said I WANT your guys' input, how am I supposed to become a better writer if I don't know what I'm doing wrong? So yea don't feel hesitant to give reviews such as yours, and that goes for everyone who reviews my stories. But to your point, I knew I was taking a risk with an emotional Wally, but the reason being that I really wanted to put emphasis on the brotherly bond Wally felt with Roy. I wanted to convey that intense bond, and betrayal through Wally's emotions, because I feel like subjects like these would tend to get the best of Wally's impulsiveness i.e when Mount Justice exploded and he imploded on Dick about friends getting hurt, Kaldur triple-crossing, and Artemis' safety. Also the reason I have him in such a vulnerable state is because he's with Artemis, and I feel like he'd only break down in front of her because he feels intimate enough and comfortable enough with her to let himself do that. But yea, overly emotional Wally was a bit of a long shot, but I felt like the story required it, but we all have our preferences and I hope I gave some insight into why I wrote Wally like I did so you can have a bit of a better understanding as to why I did what I did. **

**Also, I think I'll be able to wrap this story up within a chapter or two, three if I feel like I can squeeze some more into this. Thanks for all your guys support along the way, it really helped me continue this.**


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